Your family is killed… your friends are gone… you will be too if you do not submit to torture, drugs, and killing. This is how these children around the world being forced to fight feel on a daily basis. Everyday hundreds of thousands of children are taken away from their homes. Children, tortured and killed simply to do the dirty work Forced to kill and are tortured at such a young age is not the way anyone should live. Worldwide there are thousands of children that are created victims through drugs, brainwashing, and the terrible acts of war. A less obvious way children become victims is through brainwashing. According to human-rights experts, they estimate that more than 200,000 children worldwide are still being used as combatants, usually against their will (Gettleman). http://www.onlinedigitalpubs.com/publication/?i=47599 What this evidence suggests is that there are way too many children being taken away from their lives on a daily basis. The only way the children were able to carry out this task was after the brainwashing, torture, and drugs that had become them. Drugs that the child soldiers were forced to frequently consume were mainly cocaine mixed with gunpowder. Furthermore, according to Prasow, Khadar (a previous child soldier) was forced into compliance by being “strung up like a pig” to his air vent and tortured until he agreed to do their nasty work. Even though Khadar is frequently known as a perpetrator due to his father’s past as an Al Qaeda member. When questioned about killing a US Soldier it is stated, “he bragged about killing a US Soldier, happiest day of his life was when he planted mines to kill the US Soldiers,” (Prasow). https://www.hrw.org/news/2010/10/27/child-soldier-trial-guantanamo However even with this evidence, Khadar was “tied up like a pig” and was half blinded and received two bullet wounds to the chest. One of the most obvious reasons child soldiers are either considered victims or perpetrators is the terrible acts of war. Children are forced to kill in cruel ways in order to survive. Terrible acts of war is a way to change your perspective of these children. These acts cause children's lives to be effected even when they're adults. In the article written by Gregory Warner about a former child soldier Dominic Ongwen, is on trial after becoming a child soldier 25 years ago when he was ten. The article states, “One rule of that new life was that any child caught trying to escape would likely be beaten to death by the other children,” This shows is just one piece of evidence that shows everyday children are forced to turn on others in order to survive. The article, “Forced to Fight--Children Suffer All Their Lives,” says that a little boy named Bosco was handed a machete at six years old and told to murder his little sister. "The commander pointed the barrel of his gun at me and said: 'Cut her and do it quickly!' I thought: 'Please let me die.' Then I heard the rapid fire right over my head. That's the moment when my heart sank and I knew I was going to do it. I raised my arm to haul out, and my sister started to cry. And I started to cry as well and said: 'Please forgive me, Juli. I have to do this.' The commander tapped my shoulder once more. And I raised my arm and I drove the machete through my sister's neck." (Ruta) http://www.dw.com/en/forced-to-fight-children-suffer-all-their-lives/a-16590697 At this point in life children are too immature to make their own decisions and, are heavily influenced by elders. When you are six years old you should be enjoying life--running through the park, having play-dates, and just having fun in general . . . not being handed a machete and being forced into killing your little sister. If you, at six years old were forced to murder your little sibling you would most definitely be considered a victim. These soldiers are considered perpetrators by many and treated as high priority criminals on flimsy evidence. However this shouldn’t be the case. For example, Prasow stated that many ways child soldiers were convicted of being perpetrators is because they hung out with terrorist groups. However, people do not comprehend that terrorists are the ones that are brainwashing, torturing, and drugging the children. Spectators don’t understand the brutality that these children go through. Grace Akallo, a previous child soldier states, “And Joseph Kony also used psychological techniques to control the children, telling them that he knew their thoughts and could tell when they were considering escaping. “I tried to stop thinking. I’m scared he’s going to get me. And it’s not a joke — they bring people and they kill them in front of you and they say they were thinking of escape”(Akallo). http://hereandnow.legacy.wbur.org/2012/04/19/kony-child-soldier Child soldiers everyday are forced into acts and feel like this. In conclusion child soldiers are created victims through brainwashing and killings. This is commonly happening around the world. Whether it’s terrorist groups or an army child soldiers are taken away from their families, lives, and friends and forced to kill against their will. There are several examples of this around the world. Whether they’re forced, sold, or kidnapped into it it’s a cruel industry.
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By: Katie Miller
Malcolm X and Martin Luther King were very famous during the civil rights era due to their influential speeches about equality. Martin Luther King delivered his most famous speech, “I Have a Dream” which inspired the black community and urged for the American Government to treat African Americans equally. Martin Luther King stated in his influential speech, “I say to you today, my friends, that in spite of the difficulties and frustrations of the moment, I still have a dream”. In the speech “Ballot or Bullet” spoken by Malcolm X he was about bringing awareness to the white stereotypes and because you’re different doesn’t mean there shouldn’t be equality. No matter the reason, race, religion, gender, etc. In Malcolm X’s speech he discusses about a “black revolution”. Martin Luther King’s speech is similar in a way that he pushes for equality. MLK shows this by stating “100 years later the Negro is still not free.” refering to the Civil War. Both speakers wanted to fight for the black freedom and equal rights they believed in. Even though the main objective of the two speakers were similar the ways of accomplishing were very different. Martin Luther King believed that solving the conflicts in the most peaceful way possible would be best. He states, “We must not allow our peaceful protests to degenerate into physical violence.” However Malcolm X had a different approach. He believed he should be able to push through whatever comes in his way. In the speech spoken by MLK he also refrained from stating many personal facts unlike Malcolm X who spoke about his Muslim religion. In conclusion both authors believed that the equality and freedom for African Americans needed to be reached and the legacy of these people would leave a positive affect. It’s now been almost 15 years since the attack on the World Trade Center in New York on September 11th 2001. A doctor who was working in Columbia Presbyterian Hospital shares her experience with her husband.
The day of the attack she goes to the hospital like any ordinary day. Today she had to teach her med student how to put in an IV. All of the sudden her co-worker casually says that one of the towers had caught fire. They all just sat still, confused. A few moments later the TV was turned on. There was a gasp in the room. It wasn’t just a fire, there was a giant hole filled with thick black smoke ¾ from the base of the building. At this point everyone is now gathered by the TV in awe watching one of the towers burn. She called her husband who is working ten blocks down from the towers. She learned that her husband was ok but it was not only a fire, it is a bomb and some believe a small plane. She realizes hitting the tower wasn’t an accident. Soon after hanging up. Everyone broke into an organized panic. The second tower had been hit by a plane and by this time everyone knew it hadn’t been an accident. After the tower was hit the hospital broke into “disaster mode.” She worked with the staff and patients and cancelled all procedures. We were expecting to be busy for the next few days. All staff who didn’t have a specialty left to go be in the operating rooms to triple the staff. She got a page that came in from her brother-in-law. It took two or three tries to get back to him but once she did she was asked, “Have you talked to Mike?” She responds, “Yes, but not since the second tower has been hit.” His brother then says “I think you should call him and tell him to get out of downtown.” She continuously tries to call Mike’s office however all the phone lines are still down. Meanwhile she has to deal with talking over her residents and patients. Her phone rung, it’s Mike’s friend Nadia. Nadia says she wasn’t able to find Mike anywhere. Her face goes blank. It felt like a punch in the stomach. Even though people getting admitted, chaos happening, and the effects of the terrorist attacks, Kim had found her husband and her family was safe it wasn’t the same for everyone. The outcome of the attack caused 343 firefighters to die, 60 policemen, 8 emergency medical technicians, and 2,566 civilians, for a total of 2,977 deaths caused by the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. Since the event we haven’t had anything as big as this occur but since then America has been impacted still to this day. |
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March 2017
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